Abstract
Purpose :
To evaluate and compare cornea thickness and curvature in Chinese elderly patients with dry eye disease versus age-matched controls.
Methods :
This is a cross-sectional random population-based study on Chinese subjects aged 50 and above between 27 September 2021 and 31st of August 2023. In total, 1209 consecutive subjects underwent comprehensive dry eye assessment in order from least invasive to most invasive, including dry eye questionnaire (OSDI score), non-invasive keratographic tear breakup time, tear meniscus height and NEI cornea staining score. The OCULUS Keratograph 5M was used to undergo the OSDI, non-invasive keratographic tear breakup time and tear meniscus height. The definition of dry eye was adopted from Asia Dry eye Society. Swept Source-Optical Coherence Tomography was used to determine central cornea thickness (CCT), cornea astigmatism, average K and KMax values. The right eye was used for analysis.
Results :
In total 244 subjects had dry eye disease and 965 subjects served as controls. The mean central corneal thickness (CCT) was found to be significantly lower in dry eye patients compared to controls. Mean CCT was 0.536 +/- 0.044 mm in controls and 0.528 +/-0.067 mm in dry eye patients. Cornea astigmatism was noted to be significantly higher in dry eye disease compared to controls (0.762 +/- 0.639 diopter in normal patients and 0.858 +/- 0.725 diopter in patients with dry eyes). There were however no significant differences in KMax and average K values between groups.
Conclusions :
Elderly patients with dry eye disease had thinner corneas and higher cornea astigmatism compared to controls. Differences in cornea thickness and curvature may play a role in predisposing certain patients to dry eye disease. When investigating the underlying etiology of dry eye disease in patients, it is worthwhile to consider the possible impact of cornea shape on tear film stability.
This abstract was presented at the 2024 ARVO Imaging in the Eye Conference, held in Seattle, WA, May 4, 2024.